David Paul Davenport graduated from Coalinga High School, and received degrees from West Hills College at Coalinga, CSU at Fresno, and the University of Illinois, at Urbana. He had a career as a college professor and educational consultant until 2007 when he began to research Civil War veterans who settled in Fresno, California. In 2017 he delved into the history of Coalinga. He has been a Civil War Re-enactor since 1992 and has worked seasonally as Santa Claus since 2014.